


I Do

by ZoeSong



Category: C.B. Strike (TV), Cormoran Strike Series - Robert Galbraith, Strike (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Friendship, Partnership, Post-Career of Evil, Vashti Dress, the green dress
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-20
Updated: 2019-03-03
Packaged: 2019-06-13 11:15:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,214
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15363399
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZoeSong/pseuds/ZoeSong
Summary: What happens after Robin says, “I do.”





	1. I Do

**Author's Note:**

  * For [LulaIsAKitten](https://archiveofourown.org/users/LulaIsAKitten/gifts).



> Note: Many thanks to LulaIsAKitten for encouraging me to write and post this, my first Strike fic — and also for her excellent beta work.
> 
> ~~
> 
> Note: Picks up immediately after Robin says, “I do” in “A Career of Evil.”
> 
> ~~

[](https://imgur.com/0JrVyld)

~~

 

“I do,” said Robin in a ringing voice, looking straight into the eyes, not of her stony-faced new husband, but of the battered and bloodied man who had just sent her flowers crashing to the floor. Cormoran Strike grinned sheepishly at her, the guests tittered, and the vicar paused in the service. 

Robin stared for a few moments, mesmerized by the fact that Strike was actually there, at her wedding, and what that must mean. A gentle “ahem” came from the vicar, and embarrassed, she turned back to him, murmuring, “sorry.”

All that remained was the vicar’s final words. Robin steadied herself, and looked back into Matthew’s steely eyes. She flashed him an apologetic look.

The vicar began, “With the power vested in me–”

“Wait.” Matthew broke his gaze with Robin and turned to the vicar. “I can’t do this.” He turned back to Robin. “This is never going to work.”

Robin was startled, but strangely overcome with immense relief. “I think you’re right,” she said, giving him a weak smile.

Matthew seemed almost surprised, as if he expected her to burst into tears and beg him not to leave her at the altar. But he recovered, and said stiffly, “I’m sorry.” Then he spun on his heel, and without looking at anyone, walked out of the church through a side door. Murmurs rose from the congregation.

Robin stood staring after Matthew, still stunned at the turn of events. Beside her, the vicar was fumbling through his prayer book, seeming unsure of how to proceed. Robin collected herself and turned slowly toward her guests.

Searching for words, she cast her eyes over the crowd, and then let them settle on her parents. Taking a breath to steady herself, she began, “I’m sorry for all the trouble, all the expense. I should have realized – I should have stopped it.” Her father and mother’s eyes were reassuring and Robin almost began to cry with relief – and with the emotion of everything that had passed in the stressful weeks before.

But she forced back the tears, took control and faced the congregation. “Thank you all for coming – I’m so sorry for…for what’s happened. I’ll…I’ll see that all your gifts are returned to you.” She grappled for something else to say. “Umm…but there is a splendid supper waiting at Swinton Park. Do go and enjoy an excellent meal at least.” She caught the eye of her mum, who was nodding at her in encouragement despite the strained look on her face. “Perhaps just think of it as a posh evening out?” She shook her head at how ridiculous that sounded, glanced at Strike, who was still grinning at her, and she suddenly felt a wave of hysterical laughter welling up inside her. Pressing one hand to her mouth to cover that she was about to laugh at the insanity of it all, and gathering her skirt and veil in the other, Robin turned, carefully navigated the two steps from the altar, and walked quickly out the side exit, opposite of where Matthew had gone. 

Robin could hear the rising voices of her astonished guests as the door closed behind her, and she hurried across the hallway and out the door to the churchyard. Though she longed desperately to speak to Strike, she didn’t want to see anyone else, so she continued down to the end of the church and turned the corner, tucking herself beside a buttress. There she leaned gratefully against the cool stone wall, trying to catch her breath.

Soon she heard steps coming towards her and a voice calling her. “Robin.” 

It was Strike.

Taking a breath, Robin turned towards his voice. She realized that she was trembling. 

He came limping around the corner, saw her and stopped short, struck once more by how much better she looked in person than in his memory of her. But he saw the anxiety in her face. He gave her a sympathetic look. “Are you all right?” 

She nodded in answer to his question, but stilled as she took in the state of his face. “Are _you_?” 

“Yeah. It was Laing – and he didn’t go quietly. But he went.”

“Thank God!” Her hands rose to her face.

“Yeah, and Robin, they got Brockbank too.” He watched as her eyes filled with tears and she clasped her hands together and drew them down over her heart.

“Oh, I’m so relieved…I’d have never forgiven myself if he’d…” Her voice broke a little and she worked to pull herself together. She looked into Strike’s eyes. “I’m _so_ sorry – for everything. I should have told you. I’m sorry I ruined your business, I…I let personal feelings cloud my judgment. I…”

“Robin.” He stepped a little closer to her and dipped his head to meet her gaze. “We _both_ did – with me it was Whittaker. There’s nothing I wanted more than to put that bastard away. I _do_ understand why you did it.”

She nodded, still fighting back tears. Strike was here and he was talking to her – and it seemed he was forgiving her. 

“And I’m sorry too. I shouldn’t have come to your flat when I was so livid. I thought I was in control because I wasn’t shouting or smashing things, but I was as bad as Carver, the way I blew up at you. Especially after everything you went through.”

Robin shook her head. “No, you had every right. And I was out of line too – I shouldn’t have said that about you and Brockbank.”

“Well, it was true, though I didn’t appreciate hearing it at the time.” He shifted uncomfortably. “But even though I was still angry with you, before the night was over, I found myself wanting to call you.”

“Oh, I wanted you to call so much – I thought of ringing you to apologize, but I supposed you wouldn’t pick up – or that you’d hang up on me.” She pursed her lips, trying to keep her composure. “And then I was too proud to call after seeing the Culpepper article.” She couldn’t bring herself to admit to him how furious she’d been then.

Strike grimaced. “I’m sorry – I knew that would hurt you if you saw it, but I thought you’d also realize why I did it.”

Robin gave him a blank look. “You were angry at me and needed another partner…”

“No – well, yes, I was still angry at you. But what I gave Culpepper was to throw Laing off. I hoped that if you were no longer connected to me, that he’d lose interest in you. He was targeting you to get to me.”

Robin stood shaking her head, trying to make sense of it. “You were trying to protect me,” she said in wonder.

Strike nodded. “You know I couldn’t afford anyone with those qualifications – hell, I could hardly afford _you_.” He gave her a lopsided grin. “But Laing wouldn’t know that. And it would make him furious that he’d failed to ruin me.”

“I guess I wasn’t thinking very clearly.” She shook her head again. “So you didn’t hire anyone else?”

“By then I had decided that I wanted you back. That’s why I rang you.”

“You rang me? When?”

“Uh, about two days ago. I left a voicemail.”

“I didn’t get any calls or messages from you…I checked.”

“Are you sure you didn’t delete it in a fit of rage?”

“Of course not.” And then a realization dawned on her. “But I know who did.” 

Strike frowned. “Matthew.”

Robin glanced off into the distance, seeing her phone in Matthew’s hand two days ago at the Donington Park Services. “He had my phone, said he needed to call about the honeymoon…” She sighed. “It doesn’t really matter now, does it?”

“I didn’t mean to break up the wedding.”

“No, I think it’s for the best. He would never accept me working with you again.”

“So you’ll come back?”

“If you still want me.” 

“I do.” He gave a curt nod. “’Course, you have to swear that you’ll always consult me before doing anything like that again.” His voice was stern, but there was camaraderie in his eyes. “Do you?”

Robin nodded emphatically. “I do.”

“Good. And you won’t ever call Shanker without telling me.”

“I won’t.”

“Well, all right then. We’re back in business. What’s left of it.” Robin winced, and he hurried to add, “Don’t worry, we can build it back.”

Tears sprang to her eyes at the word “we” and she nodded, trying desperately not to actually cry.

“There’s just one more thing. How did you get the money to pay Shanker? He said you gave him five hundred quid. I thought you were skint?”

She smiled mysteriously at him and drew her eyes down to her toes, gently lifting the hem of her dress. She slid one foot in front, displaying one of the serviceable white shoes she’d borrowed from her mother. 

Strike gave her a quizzical look. “Those aren’t the shoes you showed me.”

“No. I returned them for cash.”

He shook his head in wonder.

“My mother had given me the money when she came down to London after I’d broken off the engagement. She said to use it for either a deposit on a flat of my own, or wedding shoes. I used it to save a little girl instead.”

Strike’s eyes warmed. “Of course you did.” 

Robin felt her face flush and her heart swell. She’d missed Strike’s good opinion of her. “Matthew never liked me in heels that high anyway.”

“I bet you would have looked great in them.” He gave her an admiring look.

She tried to hide her blush.

“So, what will you do now?”

Robin glanced down at her dress. “I need to change. Then I should go sort out what is happening with my parents and the guests – give them their gifts back, if I can.”

“Then I should get out of your hair. And Shanker’s waiting.”

“Shanker’s here?”

“He drove me.”

“Ah.” Robin was touched that the man who’d saved her from Brockbank had brought Strike to her. “But surely you don’t want to drive all that way back today. Stay, we’ll find somewhere to put you.” She thought a moment. “In fact, there are likely to be rooms going spare at Swinton Park. Matthew’s people probably won’t be staying. I know one room in particular that will go spare.”

Strike shook his head. “Not the bridal suite?”

She nodded. 

“I don’t know about that.”

“Why not? It has a huge bed and a fold out sofa so you two can live like kings. And it includes a full breakfast.” Robin gave him a sly grin. “And it’s all on Matthew.”

Strike smiled broadly. “I might be able to live with that.”

“I’ll see you at the reception then?”

“I guess you will.” He started to turn away, then on impulse, turned back. Taking her hand, he bent to kiss it like he’d done that day so many months ago. “You look stunning, by the way,” he said as he rose, still holding her hand.

Robin blushed, and smiled up at him. He grinned back at her, released her hand, then turned to go.

Robin’s spirits were light as she watched him walking haltingly around the side of the church and out of sight. This was certainly not how she’d imagined her wedding day going, but it looked like it just might be “happily ever after” after all.

~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Picset photos: 
> 
> I love that JKR uses real places in her Strike novels. I was googling and looking at them throughout my reading of the books. So I’ve included some notes and links to photos of a couple of them.
> 
> Church: That is the actual church used in the book and the show, Church of St. Mary the Virgin, in Masham, North Yorkshire. I didn’t include this in the story or the picset, but there are photos of the old Saxon cross shaft that is still there, right in front of the main door of the church. There is a little path from the parking area, so Strike would have had to run a bit of distance from where Shanker pulled up. Shanker could have waited in the cafe that is right next to that parking area (see maps.google). The church is in the town center and the parking is for the church and the neighboring shops in the square.
> 
> More here about the church (and more photos and descriptions), including an in-depth description of the layout and dimensions of the church, including notes that there are indeed doors to both the north and south as I have Robin and Matthew use to exit. I also ran across a photo of that crab that Robin mentions wondering about when she was a child; it’s not noted here, but I can find it if anyone wants me to post it.  
> [Reviews and Photos](https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g670891-d10809369-Reviews-Church_of_St_Mary_the_Virgin-Masham_North_Yorkshire_England.html)  
> [History and Photos](http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/yorks/north/vol1/pp323-332)  
>   
> Swinton Park is a historic home that is now used for weddings and receptions. Interestingly, Swinton Park is historically the seat of the Danby family and (from 1882) of the Cunliffe-Lister family (the Earls of Swinton). So maybe Matthew is descended from them? I don’t recall that mentioned in the books, but it could explain his cockiness. Of course, Cunliffe may just be a very common North Yorkshire surname. This information is from the Wikipedia article on Swinton Park.  
>   
> There are many lovely photos of weddings and receptions held at Swinton Park here. I found the photo of the Jimmy Choo shoes among those photos, coincidentally enough. Or perhaps they belonged to a Strike fan who decided to get married there?  
> More [here.](https://markwallisphoto.com/yorkshire-wedding-photography/swinton-park-wedding-photography-michaela-and-ben/)


	2. The Day After

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The day after the wedding that wasn’t, Robin has an unexpected conversation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was shuffling through my fic folder and discovered this. I'd forgotten that I'd been writing it. Of course it's completely AU, but I figured it might be interesting to polish and post. 
> 
> If you like it, there may be one more chapter as well.

~~

Robin had been up for an hour and was doing the dishes in the kitchen when Strike called. She quickly dried her hands and picked up.

“’Morning,” she said cheerfully.

“Robin. You sound well.”

“I _am_ well, thanks.”

“Good.” His voice was warm.

“How was the room?”

“It was bloody great! That bed – I didn’t want to get up. Until the breakfast came – I don’t think I’ll eat again for a week.”

“Well, it is the bridal suite. Did they say anything?”

Strike chuckled. “The server looked pretty surprised to see Shanker with me when I opened the door for room service, but he was too polite to comment.”

Robin giggled at the image of Strike and Shanker as the happy couple. 

“Anyway, we’re about to head out. You need us to come by for anything?”

“No, I’m fine, thanks. I’m going to stay a few days and get the rest of the gifts sorted.” 

“I thought everyone told you to keep them. Your aunt really set the trend, didn’t she?” 

It had been a surprise when Robin had tried to pair up the gifts with their givers and her aunt had announced loudly that Robin should keep her gift as she might need it for setting up her own household in London. Other relatives, equally inspired, or at least shamed into imitating their matriarchal aunt, did likewise, and many friends followed suit. Robin had been touched.

“Yes, but that was just my friends and family. There are still all the gifts from Matthew’s side.”

“You aren’t leaving that for him to do?”

“They were sent to us at my parents’ house, so my mum and I will take care of it. And…well, Matthew did me the great favor of making the hard decision that I couldn’t quite make – to break up for good.”

“Ah…so…no regrets then?”

“No…it seems not. I think I’m rather relieved, really.” She was surprised to find that she woke up feeling as if a burden had been lifted. She had not realized how unhappy she’d been with Matthew despite feeling that she loved him. It felt like she could make a fresh start now.

“Good. Well, take your time. I’ll need to sort things with the police, and the press will be hounding us for days, so you’d be smart to stay away for a while anyway. Your job will be waiting for you.”

A warm feeling welled up in Robin’s chest. “Thanks, Cormoran.”

“Of course.” 

“I – oh–” She had just seen a familiar car pull in the driveway.

“What?”

“I have to go. Matthew just pulled in.” 

“Oh yeah?” A feeling of dread washed over Strike. Was Matthew going to try repair the relationship? Surely not. Or maybe… “You think he’s found about my using the room? Might he have come to cause trouble? You want Shanker and me to drop by after all?”

Robin made a little huffing noise. “No, that won’t be necessary. All my brothers are here, so there’s plenty of muscle. Besides, Matthew brought his dad. I don’t think he’s here to make trouble. After all, he’s the one who broke it off with me.”

“All right, then, keep me posted.”

“I will. Safe journey. Bye.”

“Bye.”

Strike rang off and Robin stood there staring out the window for a moment. Her dad had gone out to greet Matthew and his dad. Robin took a breath, looked down at her phone, remembered the deleted voicemail and blocked number, and got up the nerve to go talk to him.

Robin headed outside and walked slowly up the gravel path. Matthew looked away from where their dads were talking and gave her a somewhat sheepish look. “Hi Robin.”

“Hi. I didn’t expect to see you today.”

“I wanted to bring you these.” He handed her his keys to their flat. “I figured you’d need them before I would.”

“Oh?”

“I’m going on the…the trip, you know, the honeymoon trip. I got the ticket changed and I’m going with Roger, you know, from Rugby.” He looked vaguely uncomfortable when he said this, but hurried on. “I already have the time off from work and the trip’s all paid, so I figured I might as well.”

“Sure. I’m glad it won’t go to waste.” It was odd how Matthew had looked when mentioning Roger, but Robin found that she didn’t really care. “Where are you going? You kept that a pretty big secret.” 

“Greece. A cruise of some of the islands, a week on Cephalonia at the beach, and a few days in Athens.”

“Oh, wow, that sounds fun.”

Matthew gave a grimace. “I thought you’d like it.”

“I would have.” She had always wanted to go to the Mediterranean. But the thought of doing so with Matthew was no longer appealing. There was an awkward pause. 

“Yeah. So…we’ll be gone for the two weeks, then I’ll probably bunk with Roger for a while after that. Give you time to find another flat and move house. I’ll have to do the same. But the lease isn’t up for another month, and the rent’s all paid, so you can use it until then.”

“Thanks – that’s…that’s good of you.”

“Well, I’m the one who broke up. And…” He glanced at the phone that was still in her hand. “You must have figured out what I did to your phone.” There was a guilty look in his eyes.

“Yeah. That was rather sneaky of you.” She tried to keep her tone neutral, considering that he was being conciliatory.

“Sorry. I just wanted him out of our lives for good.”

Robin swallowed hard, trying to mask her resentment. “Well, he’s out of your life, so you managed that.”

“I didn’t want _you_ to be out of my life, Robin.”

“I know. But it’s for the best.”

“I was surprised you were so quick to accept it.” There was hurt in Matthew’s eyes.

“Well, I agreed with you, it wasn’t going to work.”

“Robin, I do love you. I did want to marry you.”

“I know. I love you too. But just because people love each other doesn’t mean they will be happy together.”

“Maybe not.” He shrugged uncomfortably. “Well, I’d best get going. I’ve a plane to catch.”

“Right. Have a good time.” 

There was tension in his eyes as he nodded. Then he turned abruptly to go.

“And don’t forget the sun lotion or you’ll turn into a lobster.”

He chuckled as he walked to the car. “I won’t, thanks.” His dad noticed and concluded his conversation with Michael. 

As Robin watched the car turn to pull out of the driveway, Matthew gave a brusque wave and she caught just a hint of regret in his eyes. 

She couldn’t feel any regret herself.

Her dad strolled slowly up to her. “Alright?”

Nodding, she smiled. “Yeah. Let’s take Rowntree for a walk.” 

Arm in arm, with Rowntree frolicking as well as an elderly dog could, they headed off into the peaceful morning. 

And Robin knew that everything was going to be fine. 

~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Many thanks to LulaIsAKitten for her help with a few Britishisms. (Note: in the US, "sun lotion" would connote something to help you tan, not to prevent you from burning). 
> 
> Any remaining Americanisms are on me; I did not have anyone read the final draft. Feel free to fill me in on them if you catch any. I do try to make the characters sound appropriately English. :)


	3. Back to London

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As Robin buoyantly prepares to return to work, she learns something upsetting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please remember that this is an AU story taking place after _Career of Evil_ , and begun before the release of _Lethal White_.
> 
> Many thanks to Lulacat for her helpful advice on this chapter.

~~

 

It had been nearly two weeks since Robin and Strike had parted company in Masham. They had been in occasional communication as she took care of unfinished business in Masham and then returned to London to start hunting for a flat and sorting things to be moved, left, or sold from the old flat. Strike found himself missing her more each time they talked or texted.

So he was surprised – and pleased – when she popped in unexpectedly on a Thursday morning.

“Heya!”

“Hi.” He grinned at her. “Wasn’t expecting you until Monday.”

“I know. But I had business in town and thought I’d drop by. I wanted to give you this.”

She handed him an envelope, and looked immensely pleased with herself. He gave her a baffled look as he took it.

Opening it, he found a cheque. His eyebrows knit quizzically as he saw that it was made out to his business. Then his jaw dropped open as he saw how much it was made out for. “Six thousand quid?”

Robin nodded delightedly. 

Strike shook his head in disbelief. “Did you rob a bank?”

“Yeah, I held them at gun point while they made out the cheque for me.” She giggled, snorting a little. “No! I sold the dress.”

“You got six thousand pounds for your wedding dress?”

“No! Not a chance, though I do have it up for auction. I mean the _green dress_ – the _Vashti_ dress.”

“Ahhhh!” Understanding dawned, but then Strike had a momentary pang, as he’d always had visions of seeing Robin in the dress, out with him for some fancy soirée. Yet the thought that she’d managed to get that much money for it was astounding. “But I paid less than half that. Do designer dresses appreciate in value?”

“They do when they are associated with someone famous. I’d been selling a few other things and had been skimming through the auction site, looking at how things were listed, and noticed that lots of people auction gowns that actresses have worn to major events, sometimes for charity. So I set it up like that.”

“But no one famous wore it – and our business isn’t a charity.”

“No, but the auction raised more than three times this much – and half is going to charity.”

Strike shook his head again, unbelieving and confused.

“I got the idea of how I could help both the business and some needy people. I contacted Vashti, told them about the dress, how it played an integral part in solving the Lula Landry case – don’t worry, I didn’t tell them exactly _how_ it did that. I told them that I wanted to auction it to raise money for a charity in her name and to allow for the business to take a few pro-bono cases this year. They were more than happy to have their name associated with her and good works, so I brought the gown in. They issued a certification of authenticity and verified that it was still in mint condition. I put it up for auction, made a few carefully-placed calls, and voilá, it sold for nearly £20,000.”

Strike gasped. “That’s amazing. Who would pay that much for a dress?”

“Oh, you’ll never guess who.” 

Strike was at a loss. He just shook his head.

“Someone who loved Lula.” When Strike still didn’t guess, Robin revealed, “Guy Somé! And furthermore when I took the dress to him, he said that if I ever needed it to work a case again, I could borrow it. So we get our cake and eat it too. And Lula’s drug rehab center gets a hefty donation, along with a shelter for abused women and children.”

Strike looked at her warmly. “You’re bloody brilliant.” 

Robin beamed. 

Strike enjoyed the slight flush of Robin’s cheeks for a moment. It was good to have her back. Then, he looked down at the cheque again. “But shouldn’t you keep some of this – or really, all of it?”

She shook her head. “I kept a portion to get set up in my own flat. But mostly I want it to be set aside for a rainy day so we can take on things like the Bombyx Mori case. Meanwhile, though, we have start-up money to run the business until we get more cases.”

Strike nodded at her approvingly. 

“I probably should have told you what I was doing, but I wanted it to be a surprise.”

“Well, it is. A very welcome one.” He grinned. “Welcome back!” 

“Thanks! It’s good to be back, though I still have some packing to do at the flat. I’ll be back properly on Monday, but I want to hear all about that new case you mentioned.”

And so they spent the rest of the afternoon going over his notes and then getting into the case. Strike sighed happily as he heard Robin hustle about the office and heard her fingers tapping industriously on her keyboard as she readied everything for her Monday return. Everything felt right again.

 

~~

 

Robin was in the kitchen sorting utensils. She’d decided to leave a great many of them for Matthew since he liked to cook, and it wasn’t likely that the rugby mate he was going to share a flat with would have so many.

She was startled by a noise in the back garden, and for a moment Robin froze, worried that it could be the killer. She started to reach for a knife from the cutting block, then shook herself, recalling that the killer was caught, as was Brockbank. Still, she found herself stepping cautiously to the window, muttering at her residual nerves. It would be good to get out of this place and into a new flat with new flatmates.

Peering through the window, she spied one of Matthew’s rugby buddies rummaging around in the back shed. Relieved, she went out the back door to chat with him. 

He turned in surprise. “Oh, hi. I didn’t think anyone would be around. Matt said I could drop by whenever it was handy to pick up the rugby gear. I’ll be keeping it at my place until he gets resettled.”

“Sure.” She nodded and started back to the kitchen. Suddenly a thought occurred to her and she turned back to him. “Wait, aren’t you called Roger?”

“Yeah, why?”

“Is there more than one Roger on the team?”

“No, just me.”

“Weird. I could have sworn Matthew said you’d be going to Greece with him.”

“No, he went with Sa- uh, Sam.” His face turned red.

Robin looked at Roger quizzically. “Sam? I don’t remember a Sam. But then, I don’t really know all the guys anyway.”

“No, well, umm, he’s one of the newer ones.” Roger stammered and shifted uncomfortably.

“I see, well, carry on.” Robin watched as Roger turned back to inspect the gear, and stood staring after him. _“Sam,” eh? Sounded more like he had been about to say “Sarah.”_

As she wandered back into the kitchen pondering this, she recalled that Matthew had looked a bit uncomfortable the day he’d told her he was going on the trip with a friend. He must have been hiding that he was going with Sarah. How did that happen so quickly? Had he been fooling around with her all during their engagement?

All her anger and resentment over how Matthew had tried to control her during their relationship – especially his sabotaging her mobile – bubbled to the surface. She stalked fiercely into the bedroom to where her packing boxes were.

Sifting through the bedding that she’d been going to leave with Matthew, she pulled out the duvet cover that her mother had given them. She loved it, but had decided to leave it for Matt. Now her generous feelings had disappeared – he could get a new one. She retrieved a few other things she’d been going to leave for him, then sealed up her boxes.

Glancing about, she realized she was nearly ready to start ferrying things over to the new flat. She just needed to finish in the kitchen, and then she could begin her new life, separate from Matthew.

 

~~

 

Strike was in the office early on Monday, and had been working for some time when he heard someone fumbling with the outer office door, seemingly struggling to enter. He rose to see who it might be – it was much too early for a client and even for Robin.

He was surprised to see that it was indeed Robin, weighed down with a coffee maker box in one arm and a toaster in the other, with an oversized handbag slung awkwardly behind her.

“Oh, thank you,” she said as he relieved her of the coffee maker. 

“What’s all this? I know you’ve been having a clear-out, but don’t you need these for your new flat?”

“No, my flatmates have better ones than these, so I thought we could use them here. Save us some money on take-away coffees and sandwiches.”

“Right, good. But won’t Matthew need them?”

“Matthew can rot.” Robin couldn’t keep the venom out of her voice.

Strike’s eyebrows rose in surprise at her expression. “I thought he was being nice about things.”

“Oh, he is – or he was. It’s me who isn’t going to be so nice about things anymore.” 

“Did something happen? I thought you were doing okay with the break-up. I mean before you weren’t so….”

“Vindictive? No, I wasn’t. And I’m still relieved that we broke up. But I found out something.” She’d not been going to tell Strike any of this, but now it just seemed to pour out. “Matthew went on the honeymoon trip with Sarah Shadlock.”

Strike’s jaw dropped. “Well, that’s landing on his feet.”

“Exactly.”

“Sorry, that wasn’t very sympathetic.”

“It’s alright. I think I’m more angry that he lied yet again than I am upset that he could move on so quickly.”

Strike nodded, relieved. “How did you find out?” 

Robin told him about Roger showing up at the flat.

“You’ve got to be kidding. It sounds like he was tackled one too many times.”

“Yeah, that’s what I thought.”

“But then, are you sure he didn’t just get things mixed up?”

“Well, he got all nervous and his face turned red, so it seemed pretty obvious that he was lying. But just to be completely sure, after he’d left I switched off my caller ID and called Sarah’s work pretending to be one of her clients. Her assistant told me she was away on a spur-of-the-moment holiday to Greece and gave me the date she’d return – _exactly_ the date we were to return from the honeymoon.”

Strike shook his head in disgust. “She’s got a lot of nerve.”

“She always did. I suppose she was just waiting for her chance.”

“You think she was waiting in the wings all along?”

“Definitely.” There was a troubled look on her face.

“You think Matthew was…seeing her…even though he was marrying you?”

She sighed. “I would never have thought so. He swore that his involvement with her had been over a long time ago. He seemed so sincere when he begged me to get back together after I split with him before – got down on his knees and asked me to marry him all over again.”

Strike nodded slowly, not knowing quite what to say. Finally he settled on: “Look, if you want some more time off–” 

“No. That’s the last thing I want. Work is the best thing for me. I want to get started on that new case.”

“Alright. How about we fire up this thing and get down to business.” He started to unpack the coffee maker.

“Good idea. Shall I make us a bit of toast while I’m at it?” She pulled a small loaf of bread and a jam jar out of her handbag.

“Sounds good!” Strike set the coffee maker on the counter and started to head back into his office. Then he turned as a thought occurred to him. “Say, with all this, how about we work straight through lunch and knock off early for celebratory drinks and dinner at the Tottenham.” 

“Sure, that would be great. What are we celebrating?”

“You being back at work.” He flashed her a big grin. “It’s been lonely around here without you.”

Robin smiled, blushing a little. “I’ve missed it here too.”

As Strike headed back into his office and Robin began setting things up in the kitchenette, she reflected on the turn her life had taken. Her love life might be a shambles, but at least her working relationship was back where it should be. 

Strike and Ellacott were back in business.

 

~~


End file.
